By Anita Dangazele
While the overall crime rate has gone down in the Eastern Cape, the Nelson Mandela Bay, Buffalo City metro, and the OR Tambo region tell a more complex story, remaining the top three crime districts with murder, attempted murder and rape topping the list.
This was revealed on Thursday by provincial police commissioner Major-General Nomthetheleli Mene in Mdantsane during the release of the crime statistics for the fourth quarter of 2023-24 and the first quarter of 2024-25.
Mene said the total number of serious crimes decreased by 855 in the fourth quarter of 2023-24 and 877 in the first quarter of 2024-25, reflecting ongoing efforts to tackle crime in the province.
She said Nelson Mandela Bay, which has had the highest crime rate in previous quarters, saw a slight increase in the fourth quarter of 2023-24.
Lusikisiki, which made headlines after 18 people were shot and killed while preparing for a traditional ceremony last week, is among several hotspots for contact crimes such as murder, attempted murder and rape.
The other hotspots are Mthatha, East London, and Gqeberha’s New Brighton and Kwazakhele townships.
Mene said a big challenge the police face is the “media hype” around extortion incidents.
She said that since the Extortion Hotline opened, police have investigated only 38 genuine extortion cases, and six suspects had been arrested.
“People are phoning the hotline. We have recorded 3,032 calls, 1,553 of which were prank calls, 1,100 were calls verifying the line, and 38 cases and 15 enquiries have been registered.
“We are urging communities to use that hotline to follow up on extortion cases.”
Eastern Cape Community Safety MEC Xolile Nqatha said the cooperation agreement recently signed with Nelson Mandela Bay was unlocking another level in the fight against crime.
“Three spheres of government are now pooling together resources to fight the intensifying crime. We are also taking a justice-cluster approach in fighting crime to work collaboratively with communities. We need community involvement,” he said.
Pictured above: Eastern Cape provincial police commissioner Major-General Nomthetheleli Mene delivering the latest crime statistics in Mdantsane on Thursday.
Source: EC Community Safety
